“I’m at the point of just being content with the process of creation without expecting much in return. Then boom! That’s the exact moment when everything starts pouring in.” — Esoterica
Every artist want their story to move in a straight line. They emerge, get noticed, blow up, then collect the awards and hello fame. Most artists will tell you that’s a fairytale. The real version is slower, messier, and full of doubt. It’s years of work with no clear sign that any of it is landing.
Esoterica has been living that second version since 2019. The Lagos-based alt-pop artist has been at it since London before relocating to Nigeria in 2020. She has spent the years since dropping music, co-founding a collective, running a live music platform, and is slowly carving out a space as one of the most unique voices in Nigeria’s alternative scene. s
This week Apple Music named her their latest Up Next act in Nigeria. That puts her in a lineup with Tems, Rema, and Burna Boy. It’s a major cosign from one of the biggest platforms in the world. And true to form, Esoterica didn’t frame it as an arrival. She talked about the moment right before it
She admitted that she had reached a place of real contentment just making music for the love of it, without the added pressure to blow up or the stress of waiting to be discovered. Well it seems faith had different ideas because the recognition showed up, as it usually does, right after she stopped chasing it.
With her debut EP Avant-God due later this year, Esoterica is about to introduce herself to a much wider audience. For listeners just catching on, it’s overdue. For her, the timing feels exactly right.
